Free Falling
by Throughrye
Summary: Three weeks after the lightning wedding, and Chi-Chi is doing strange things to Goku's psyche. He's never wanted to impress a girl before, especially one as strange and clingy as her.


Long, lean legs sprinted swiftly through the ample forest, leaping gracefully over strewn sticks and twisted roots. Bristling branches reached out and snagged at her dress as she tore through abundant undergrowth, leaving small, red nicks on her cheeks and torso. Having lost her target, she dug her chapped heels into the loamy earth and skidded to a halt. Dainty fingers proceed to claw their way through a waterfall of straggly black as she reached up to undo her fraying plat, wavy hair swinging free and coming to hang just above her hourglass middle. Doubling over, she leaned a grubby palm against a nearby tree, her chest rising and falling with hot, laboured breaths.

He could smell her, fat beads of sweat snaking down her forehead and collecting over her ripe top lip. The pungent smell of fatigue and exhilaration wafted from her body, shaken loose from the restraints of her hair and carrying through the canopies into his sharp Saiyan nostrils. He crouched nimbly in the tree tops with the grace and expertise of a monkey, lanky limbs gripping onto unstable branches silently and securely. Observing his hapless prey, a feral grin spread on his lips revealing pointed canines that looked much sharper than they ought to be. She was fast, but not fast enough.

Carefully, the young man reached out for an invitation to the next tree, silently sweeping through the green of the tree-top with the elegance and grace of a shadow. Unfortunately, his dextrous fingers met with the woven twigs of a birds nest, sending his hands plunging through the spiky sticks and down into nothingness. A childish yelp of surprise left his mouth as he was battered by a dozen angered, ruffled wings. He salvaged his leap by landing firmly on the forest floor- a beautifully executed jump despite his embarrassment. So much for a surprise attack.

The woman turned tail as soon as she saw him drop to the ground. She headed for the slim cracks of light prevailing through the vibrant tangle of plants and trees. She made to jump over a fat, decaying log slumbering over her path to freedom when she felt a pair of brawny arms envelope her. She screamed. The pair crashed to the floor, unruly hair clotting with soft soil and shrivelled leaves. Breathlessness echoed around them, adrenaline and exhaustion weighing heavily on her limbs as she lay limp underneath her captor (who she noticed with a hint of distain hadn't even broken a sweat).

After a moment of indulging in sweet gratification, the man broke out into a broad smile, as sunny and infectious as the warm daylight itself. She thought she sensed something in his earnest puddles of onyx as he peered at her, his recently matured angular face a mere breath from hers. Subtly as much as deliberately, she inched forward, slowly trying to close the gap between them and press her rosy lips to his pale ones.

"… Tag!" he laughed, before springing off of her and racing out of sight in the fraction of a second.

Slim eyebrows furrowed into a lethal glower of competition: Damn. He was going down! She scrambled back onto her legs and followed him out of the mesh of woodland, determined as she drove head first through a shroud of spiny brambles and nettles. Look at her; she was behaving like a perfect savage… a true warrior princess. She was half ashamed at her uncouth behaviour but the glint of competition shimmered brightly in her eyes, contrasting to the inky black like dazzling stars. All she needed now was a war cry.

So that's exactly what she did.

Antagonised and baited, she burst out into a clearing with an almighty roar of rivalry. But the scenery drew her momentum to a sharp halt. Rows on rows of sparkling, vibrant flowers dancing around lush waves of golden tall-grass carpeted the field stretching endlessly in front of her, extending on and on into a perfect, watercolour horizon. A sigh of awe escaped her lips as she melted into the cooling wind, letting the grass whip wildly around her naked toes.

She set off one pointed elfin foot after another, beginning a leisurely walk into the virgin field that was as untouched and unmarred by human hands as a blanket of crisp, white snow. Slowly, she built up her pace into gentle jog, gradually wading through the thick barrier of grass and soaking up the atmosphere with dreamy eyes.

"You're going to have to be faster if you want to catch me!" chuckled the person suddenly in front of her, a smear of dirt smudged across his square jaw and the tanned skin of his exposed chest toasting lightly in the sunlight. Despite him privately enjoying her little awestruck reaction to the nature surrounding her, the hunger for the thrill of the chase still throbbed in his animalistic veins and settled as an itchy ardour dragging in the pit of his half- full stomach.

Spurred onwards and encouraged, she playfully swiped at him and he bobbed out of the way, easily avoiding her clumsy strikes. The outlandish pair set off again, husband and wife but not quite a couple. They blurred through the flailing tall grass with a frantic super-human speed, Ch-Chi struggling to catch up as the lush, quivering grass protested against her kneecaps and Goku deliberately slowing down and dancing enticingly in front of her view, getting closer but not quite close enough.

She laughed blithely, the sun fresh on her face and bleaching her dark freckles- the closest thing to a suntan she would ever have. Her hair floundered freely behind her, flailing in a forceful gust of wind that echoed through the wide-open field that stretched endlessly and only seemed to end where it began: a wall of writhing, crawling forest. She indulged in their childish game of tag, their careless version of kiss chase as she ran and ran, seeking the line of the horizon's end as sunset drew closer and the time grew nearer to when they would return to their awkward little dwelling in the centre of the woods.

She lost herself entirely as she became absorbed in the moment, wrapping herself in the steady 'thump- thump- thump' of her feet meeting with teeming ant-nests and hard ground underfoot. Never taking her eyes off of the stunning, ethereal being in front of her, it briefly crossed her mind how perfect and right it felt for her to be there running aimlessly through blonde fields with him. Everything blurred into wispy vision of dreamy perfection: Him, the sun, the gorgeous surroundings, Him, the glinting ring on her finger, the languorous way their world seemed to turn, Him… _Him._

She belonged with Him; she was sure of it.

A brief distraction had been enough. As she resurfaced from the blissful emersion of her own meandering thoughts she found herself heading for a head on collision with her husband. And she could do nothing to stop it. Ungracefully, her feet tripped one by one over his mischievous, horizontal body and she fell to the floor like a chopped tree-trunk, sweaty limbs tangling over one another as she rolled into an ungainly heap. Irked that he had disrupted her perfect momentum of fluid, pumping legs, she violently prevented am annoyed collection of writhing, glossy beetles from swarming up her ankles. That was the problem with creepy crawlies, _they_ didn't have a problem with squirming uninvited into your house but they didn't take to it kindly if you disturbed their peace.

Lazily, Goku regarded Chi-Chi under half hooded eyelids as she crawled next to him, that stubborn little frown he knew all too well etched onto her lips. It was a dirty trick to play, using his superior speed to slide in front of her legs whilst she had been distracted, but it had been half worth it. Strangely enough, these last few weeks he'd become somewhat obsessed with the strange girl, using his strength to bait her like kitten and mouse, provoking her whirlwind temper until he got any kind of reaction. He wasn't sure why he did it, but enjoyed her company… and was sort of beginning to appreciate her travelling all that way to chase him up on their misunderstood promise.

"… _But I still don't appreciate her trying to hang off my arms all the time' _he thought withdisdain as she unsubtly reached to twine her slender fingers around his calloused ones.

The two lay together in near perfect silence for awhile, the conflicting and contrasting colours of their clothing standing prominently against the sea of creamy yellow grass , a sore-thumb for any aircraft that sailed overhead. Squinting upwards, Goku fixed his vision on the slowly illuminating shades of sunset whilst patiently waiting for his wife to stop expelling hot, moist pants onto his right cheek. Eventually, she caught her breath, dragged her exhausted body over to his and buried her damp head in the crook of his neck, closing her eyes contently and basking in the glorious sunlight.

The man shuffled uncomfortably at the contact, but didn't dare to push her away. Bored, he twisted his head to the side, giving Chi-Chi a face-full of coarse black hair. He stared into the distance intently, acute eyesight straining to catch a glimpse of anything other than swaying grassland. The pattern repeated itself over and over, expanding into a golden smear as sunset set the parched grass alight.

"I wonder…" he mused out loud, the mystery of what lay over the sloping horizon spiking a rare chord of interest within him.

Chi-Chi mumbled something sleepy and incoherent in response to the voice reverberating through the broad chest she was using as a sweaty pillow. Raising her head slightly, she gazed expectantly at Goku's profile, trying to meet his expressive, owl eyes from a side glance.

"I was just thinking. … I wonder where this place ends."

"… Well, we could always go and check." She murmured half-heartedly, words muffled against his sun kissed skin.

Grinning like a Cheshire cat, Goku rolled them over; revealing the smooth dent in the meadow created by the shape of their languorous bodies flattening the squashy grass. Keenly, he sprung from the ground with the elegance and grace of a gymnast. He was up and bouncing impatiently on the balls of his bare feet in a swift blur of colour, waiting for the woman sprawled ungainly on the floor beneath him to join on the rare, humble little exploration. He seldom got the chance for adventure these days.

… Instead, she met his eyes with an icy stare.

"… Are you okay?" He questioned, cocking his head with boyish innocence and his voice high with earnest curiosity.

"YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO HELP ME UP!"

"… I am?"

"YES. Not only am I your wife, but I'm a DAMN princess!"

With gritted teeth and her snub, pointed nose upturned, Chi-Chi extended her hand in an expression only royalty would know. Trapping him in her fuming eye line, she lay frozen in position, waiting for him to take her invitation and graciously lift her to her feet.

Instead, a rough hand shot out and squeezed so hard that it cut the blood from her fingers, trapping her palms a cherry-red and turning her fingers an unhealthy shade of milky white. Not quite grasping the concept of 'help me up', the man yanked his wife vertical. He set a straight course south, raising his speed so rapidly that Chi-Chi could feel the supple skin of her feet skimming against the ground as she was pulled involuntarily along behind him.

Goku grunted in focus as he concentrated his energy, having only recently mastered the converted technique of flying: _Bukujutsu. _Frankly, it took a lot out of him as he leapt airborne, spiky hair pinning back into one lethal, aero-dynamic point from the force of the wind. He let go of Chi-Chi for a split second, only to re-grip her waist and sweep her fragile, rag-doll's body into the vivid skies alongside him. A slow, deliberate and uncharacteristic smirk spread on his lips as he soared higher, feeling her writhe and squeal in protest under the protective clutch of his fingers.

Abruptly, he halted like an old car slamming on the breaks. His body shuddered to a standstill. His flying technique was by no means elegant and refined yet, but considering he hadn't had much occasion to practise the stopping motion was fluid enough. Carefully, he manoeuvred Chi-Chi into his chiselled arms so that her head was level with his. The heavy pulsation of her blood surged noticeably under her skin, throbbing with the force of the erratic drum beating wildly inside of her chest. Pleased with himself, Goku sucked in one long, triumphant breath and surveyed the surroundings, literally standing on top of the world.

Chi-Chi cracked one streaming eye open and silently prayed to whoever was listening that her husband hadn't killed them both. Thoroughly cross at being manhandled like a toy, _she was delicate china after all,_ she raised her palms to give him a good wallop on the stomach. Instead, she caught sight of the sky and her jaw dropped comically to her chest, hanging open to allow an inaudible gasp of excitement to escape from the back of her throat.

It was a languid, watercolour sunset. Heavy clouds rolled poetically through the painted sky, swollen and saturated with colour. Vague circles of pale blue ran like coffee-rings around inky v-shaped birds, whilst pulsating veins of angry pinks and bloody reds throbbed through a blushing mist of orange and yellow. Sundown's confident beauty spread through the sky like a stain, smothering the pearly blue of the daytime and setting alight anything that it touched. It engulfed and consumed the tiny, silhouetted smudges of the couple who were kneeling directly before it, wrapping them up in its blistering intensity. Fiercely beautiful, the sunset was the kind of natural phenomenon that inexplicably moved people to tears.

It really looked as if it could be the end of the world.

Anger at her husband's spontaneous decision to take to the air long drifted to the back of her mind and all coherent words failing her, Chi-Chi whimpered in delight and lay her head on Goku's deliciously caramelised shoulder. The end of the horizon swirled from the couple's mind like a distant dream as they tread air together, gazing respectively at the mighty explosion of vibrancy until the first glittering of a stellar, crystal nigh time washed over the perfect painting.

Eventually, a violent, uncontrollable shiver jerked her back into consciousness. Chi-Chi suddenly became aware of her surroundings again, realising the entire sky was now coated in a milky blue-black. A large, affectionate hand soothingly stroked the creamy, exposed skin of her forearm and waist in an indulgent attempt to rub warmth into her goosepimply body. Privately, she wondered if Goku even knew what he was doing as she melted into his warm embrace, rough hands snaking lower to hold her around her plumper body parts, smoothing her thighs appreciatively along the way with the softest touch in the world.

"Hey, Chi-Chi?" he whispered seductively into her ears, hot breath thawing the nipping cold of her earlobes and his eyes gleaming like beady buttons.

She waited keenly for him to continue, desperately trying to sound more patient than she actually felt. Thousands of butterflies clawed at her stomach, each wing tickling the idealistic expectations in her mind back into gracious, fluttering motion: _"I love you" "I'd rather be here than anywhere else in the world" "You're just as beautiful as that sunset"_

… "You ever experienced free-fall?"

"What?" she mouthed from between the supple, pink petals of her lips. She sought his gorgeous, sinewy neck, darting out a moist tongue to check if his skin tasted of caramel, too. Giddiness lurched in her stomach as she became tangled in the moment… _something about falling in love?_

Goku's eyes shot open as he felt the sharp wetness of Chi-Chi's tongue bleed onto his skin. Twitching hastily into action, he tightened his grip on his wife and shot up into the chilly air again, raising a childish cry of "I CAN GO HIGHER!" over the rushing wind.

Steadily, the climbed the sky, Chi-Chi leaving profane screams behind that rang through the darkness like peeling bells. They rose higher and higher past the chalky white moon, the _lunatic _promptly distinguishing his ki once he felt the air thin enough to send jolts of dizzy, lightheaded pleasure directly to his head. The couple held buoyant in the air for a few, precious moments before gravity seized their ankles in an iron grip and sent them crashing towards the ground again.

She wasn't sure if she was screaming or not as she felt his hands let go. Hopelessly panicking, she flailed in distress and dug her trim nails into Goku's rippling abdomen. Using all the strength her body could muster, she protectively wrapped her legs around his lithe waist and bawled desperately. Wind and blood and masculine screams of exhilaration roared in her ears as she rapidly fell towards a patchwork earth, what lay beyond the horizon perfectly visible in all directions. Goku realised that it turned out to be not all that interesting, just a crop field and a cluster of fruit trees.

All the while during her decent, Chi-Chi cursed and damned Kami: the wretched being who probably taught Goku how to fly in the first place.

"Open your eyes!" yelled Goku, apparently marvelling at the view with his arms splayed carelessly behind his head.

"ARE YOU CRAZY?" she spluttered back, eyes screwed tightly into little balls.

"Don't you trust me?"

… _Well, she would be dead soon anyway. _

Experimentally, she peeked from slanted eyelids as solid muscles hooked under her armpits and a powerful wind pinned her body flat against his. A loud, delighted laugh carried to her ears as she opened her mouth in unison, letting loose an elated scream at least a perfect octave higher than his.

Three weeks after the honeymoon: probably the most she'd lived in her entire life.

Gradually, the pair's decent slowed as the distinct forms of tree-tops and roaming animals blurred into view again, the rock-hard ground approaching faster than she would have liked. Yes, she trusted him. Almost as easily as he had distinguished it, Goku alighted his ki once more and slowly floated down until the tips of his toes touched against the earth.

Giving a wan smile that didn't quite reach her eyes, Chi-Chi flopped lifelessly against the land, feeling the grass' soft, rustling embrace like a welcoming hug. She managed to murmur "You almost killed me… idiot" before darkness clotted the corners of her eyes, seeping in and shutting down her system for a while so that her limp body could recover.

More than used to her fainting spells, Goku tenderly scooped up his wife's body and huddled it close to his chest, shielding her shocked form from the cold as he gently carried her home. A simple kiss on the cheek would have sufficed perfectly as a display of affection, but for Goku, putting his wife in life threatening situations just counted as flirting.

* * *

A/N:

A quick, fun little one-shot set just after Goku and Chi-Chi's wedding. Again, makes you wonder how they ever got around to conceiving a child. Idealistically, I'd like to think that they both ended up in love, although obviously not right away, so this is my take on the sweet beginnings. Almost like Goku's version of a child teasing the girl he likes relentlessly in the playground ;)

I self-edited this as best I could, trying my hardest to pick out all of the mistakes and typos. If you spot anything glaringly obvious, please point it out in a review.

Thanks for reading, hoped you enjoyed it.

**More Goku and Chi-Chi stories, people!**

_Unbeta'd._

- Diplodoco


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